EILEEN JOSEPHINE COOKE

With heavy hearts, we announce that our beautiful mom passed away on August 28th in Boundary Trails Health Centre in Winkler at the age of 84.

She is survived by her children, James Jr. (Allison), Linda (Mark), Mark, and Karen (Jason); grandchildren, Christopher (Ashley), Meaghan, Alex, Lucas, Emma, and Regan; siblings, Paddy, David and Tommie.  Predeceased by her parents, Patrick and Kathleen; brothers, Ronnie and Gerard; and her loving husband of 61 years, James. 

Mom was born the 4th of 6 children and the only girl of Patrick and Kathleen Deegan in Dublin, Ireland.   She loved being outside and spent a lot of time on Tara Hill in County Meath.  She spent a brief period of time living in Dunsany and attended the Mercy convent school in Navan. She moved back to Dublin after finishing school, where she worked as a seamstress.

On a night out in 1959, she was asked to dance by a young soccer player, James Cooke, and they danced together for over 60 years.  They married in 1963, and, with two kids in tow, moved to Canada in 1967, landing in Winnipeg.  Two more kids followed. Mom was home with us for a number of years creating a new life in a strange country with no family close by.  She started working at Safeway part time in 1974.  In 1979 she shifted to full time and stayed with the company until retiring in 1996. Mom worked at a few different locations during her career, many of them as a union steward, and made many lifelong friends along the way.

Once she retired, Mom and Dad moved to their cabin in Manigotagan for a few years and then out to Pinawa in 2006.  They traveled a lot over the years, visiting Ireland many times and also many places in Canada and the US in their souped-up travel van.  They spent a lot of winters in Harlingen, TX.  Many friends were made over bingo, dominoes, cards and gatherings.  They stopped going south a few years ago just as COVID began.  

Mom could do it all. She was a wonderful cook, and she could sew anything, clothes, costumes, and household items.  She also knitted many sweaters and stuffies for kids and grandkids.  Between her and our dad, they could easily have built a small village.  She had many hobbies; bowling, ceramics, paper tole, macrame, needlepoint and blackwork.  She was also the biggest cheerleader for all of us. Years of Dad’s soccer games at Alexander Park, dance and baton competitions, as well as hockey, volleyball, track, and soccer games.  Unbeknownst to us, she was a cutthroat ping pong player, which was only discovered seven years ago, when, at a spry 77, she slaughtered everyone at a party, while our dad stood by and laughed at our shocked faces. But, most of all, mom’s most interesting skill was her absolute fascination with video games.  She had every gaming console in existence.  What started out as having fun with Lock n’ Chase and Burger Time turned into a passion for quest games.  She was an expert at Zelda and Final Fantasy.  This made her the coolest Nana ever. 

Mom also had the uncanny ability to win over any animal.  She had many animals growing up in the country and was always bringing a stray home.  Any pet we had; she was the always the favourite.  You could always tell where mom was when you came home based on what floor and room the dog came from.  Even after their last dog, the neighborhood dogs in Manigotagan came by every day for a biscuit until they moved to Pinawa.  

Mom was the glue that held our family together.  Despite her hilarious Book of Grudges, she had a sunny disposition and could make you feel better about anything while also gently reminding you when you were being an idiot. She also had a great gift of getting her way by making Dad think things were his idea.  She loved her house in Pinawa and hosting family and friends on their visits.  Going to Nana’s was a highlight for the grandkids as they could eat, sleep and play video games whenever they wanted. She adored movies and had a great collection. She loved dessert and had many famous ones that were required consumption at any family gathering. She was also famous for having a drink now and then, which led to her mispronouncing things to the delight of the rest of us and never letting her forget it.  All of us are in the Book.  

Over the last year, she faced declining health but managed to fit one last trip home to Ireland in March, where she was able to visit her childhood haunts and share old memories with her family.  

We would like to thank all of the staff at the Boundary Trails Health Centre for their exemplary care of our mom during her time there. You are all angels, even if some of you are in the Book.  

Mom, we love you.  

Thank you for being the rock, 

the glue, the love, and the 

laughter in our lives and 

anyone who had the pleasure 

of knowing you.  

Have a dance with Dad and 

know we have it from here.  

Godspeed on your journey, 

until we meet again.  

"Many women do noble things, 

but you surpass them all." 

Proverbs 31:29

Funeral is Saturday, September 20, Holy Rosary Church, 510 River Ave. 10:00 a.m. condolences, 10:45 a.m. Eulogy, followed by the mass.  Reception to follow.  

Livestream service link: 

https://youtube.com/live/2lpJ7qgSZnQ?feature=share

Eileen’s family kindly requests that all of her friends and relatives take a few minutes to honour her memory by sharing photos, memories, and stories, using the comment section on this page.

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ETHICAL DEATH CARE

Cremation & Life Celebrations

1833 Portage Avenue - Winnipeg

204-421-5501 - www.ethicaldeathcare.com

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